What We Can And Can't Control
by xXBalorBabeXx
Summary: Marcus Taggert knew it wasn't fair to take his hatred out on Lily Quartermaine every chance he got. Will anything ever change his perspective of her?
1. Worse Than A Hit And Run

_**A/N: Different take on the car accident that happened in the February 1st 2002 episode of GH and episodes following it, Courtney is only mentioned here and not in the story and more of Johnny's life prior to GH will be explained. And for the sake of the story, Frank and Joe Scanlon are still paramedics.**_

_**30 minutes earlier...**_

_"Sarah only stayed to talk to Lucky because she wants to help. She's like a gorgeous Mother Teresa. Why do you think she's driven me crazy all these years?" Elizabeth responded, Gia smiling slightly._

_"Well at least one of us will sleep better tonight." Gia replied, switching on the radio and Every Breath You Take by The Police playing. "I remember Marcus listening to that when he was younger." She responded._

_"Good taste in music but I wish he'd be a bit nicer to Lily." Elizabeth replied._

_"He just doesn't want her growing up too fast. Where exactly were we headed? I can't see too much-" Gia responded._

_"Gia, stop! The light's red!" Elizabeth replied frantically._

_Gia tried to stop but the car had hit someone and then crashed, rendering her and Elizabeth unconscious._

_Hearing the horn blaring, Johnny and Max ran to the scene of the accident… and their eyes widened in horror as they saw Lily unconscious on the roadside and bleeding and Gia and Elizabeth in the car, both beaten up badly from the crash._

_Max checked on them as Johnny checked on Lily, holding her neck still and inadvertently waking her up._

_"I know, it's painful to move you to stay still but you have to, kiddo." Johnny explained._

_"Courtney…" Lily responded._

_"We've had no luck finding her either. Sonny won't be happy but she needs her freedom." Johnny replied as Max's efforts to dial 911 were futile._

_"We can't just leave her out here, the boss will kill us!" Max responded as he ran over to them._

_"What about the others?" Lily asked as Johnny carefully lifted her up._

_"We'll come back for them once you're safe, okay? We promise." Johnny replied before they attempted to leave with her but heard "Stop! Nobody's going anywhere!" and saw Taggert._

_"We've tried calling 911-" Max responded._

_"I already relayed to dispatch that there was an accident, they heard me and they're sending ambulances. Put her on the ground, now." Taggert replied._

_Johnny did so after wrapping his coat around Lily, Taggert checking her over._

_"Hey Mini Mobster… how did this happen?" Taggert asked after he crouched down._

_"Car blew through a red light… please just drop your hatred for once, Gia was driving." Lily responded, Taggert wide eyed and running to where the car was._

_"Gia - Gia, are you all right?" Taggert asked, checking on her as she stirred around._

_"Marcus-" Gia responded, Taggert lightly brushing her hair back._

_"Shh, shh, shh. Don't move, okay? I'm here now. Everything's going to be okay, all right? I got an ambulance on the way. You just hold on, all right, Gia? Elizabeth? Elizabeth? This is Taggert - damn it. This is Taggert. Where is my ambulance?" Taggert replied, panic going through him._

_Lily looked to Johnny and Max, who knew she was scared._

_"What if they don't live through this?" Lily asked._

_"Let's not talk about that now. You're gonna be okay and so will they, kiddo." Johnny replied._

_Lily truly hoped so…_

**Present time…**

Tony rushed to where the ambulance bay was with Amy and Bobbie following him as Lily was wheeled out of it on a gurney and backboard, her neck, right arm and right leg braced.

"How bad?!" Tony asked as they were by Lily's side when they were all in a trauma room.

"Blood pressure is 123/76, possible spinal damage, broken arm and possibly a broken leg. She's hypothermic as well, temperature is 92.8°." Joe explained, Tony examining Lily's eyes and Lily alert enough to follow without much trouble.

"Amy, notify X ray and the MRI room as well. Bobbie, call Alan and Monica." Tony responded, Amy and Bobbie leaving and Tony turning to Lily. "Hey, little lady. Why were you out there all alone?" He replied gently.

"Someone ran off, we can't find her." Lily responded.

"What's her name and what does she look like?" Tony asked.

"Courtney Matthews… she's about 20 years old, long blonde hair and blue eyes… she was bundled up to protect herself from the cold but I can't remember…" Lily explained.

"It's okay, just focus on recovering. I'll turn over the information to the PCPD." Frank responded after writing it down, Monica and Alan running in.

"Mom, Dad…" Lily replied, Monica lightly brushing her hair back as Alan kissed Lily's forehead.

"You're gonna be okay, Sweetheart. Just stay still." Alan responded.

"He's right, you just focus on getting better, Babydoll." Monica replied.

Johnny kept his right hand on the glass window of the door, reminded of his little sister at that age… and Alan looking up before looking to Frank and nodding, Frank letting Johnny into the room.

"We won't know more until she's had X rays and an MRI but she's talking a bit." Frank responded.

"Courtney went missing, we've all been trying to find her." Johnny explained, Monica and Alan wide eyed and looking to Lily… who confirmed it with a nod.

"When I got to the parking lot of the hotel, Mike's car was gone." Lily responded.

"We know you're worried and we're sure someone will find her, okay? You just focus on getting better." Monica replied as she saw that Lily's body temperature was climbing up slowly.

Checking on Gia, Taggert hugged her.

"Hi. So, what'd the doctor say?" Taggert replied as they let go.

"Just a minor concussion." Gia responded.

"You know you're going to stay here tonight, right?" Taggert replied.

"I hit Lily…" Gia responded.

"Mini Mobster will-" Taggert replied.

"Stop calling her that, Marcus! She's not a criminal, she's just a kid who was out there looking for someone. I know you don't like Sonny or Jason but please stop projecting that hatred onto Lily, okay?" Gia responded, Taggert nodding.

He knew it wasn't fair to Lily to be hostile towards her whenever he saw her.


	2. Fixable, Right?

_**A/N: Yes, younger O'Brien, I'd say about 18 and Sonny having taken him in like Joe Scully did for Sonny. Also, Elizabeth will be in the story more and Johnny's like an older brother to Lily. Like Courtney, Janine is only mentioned. I do intend on keeping Mike in the story though as him and Sonny have a long way to go in mending their broken family bond.**_

_**January 31st 2002…**_

_"I have the idea that you may come out of this whole ordeal a better person. Well, if not better, at least easier. Maybe you're going to reconsider your whole life and look at what's right in front of you and see how lucky you really are. And see your glass is half-full. I dream about you waking up and looking at me and seeing-" Alan replied as Edward slowly woke up._

_"Alan?" Edward responded._

_"I'm right here, Father." Alan replied._

_"I hope you're sorry for what you've put me through." Edward responded._

_"Still as ornery as ever. No wonder Dr. Selwyn thinks you're going to make a full recovery." Alan replied._

_"Where's Lila?" Edward asked._

_Out in the hallway, Johnny had gotten Lily to eat pancakes and drink some coffee… and he knew she was still worried._

_"He drives you crazy but you absolutely adore your grandfather." Johnny replied._

_"I remember the one time he tried to throw you out of the house… no matter how many times I've tried to convince him otherwise, he still sees you as a bad influence on me." Lily responded._

_"Well he didn't like it that you got that heart tattoo on your finger." Johnny replied, motioning to the small black heart tattoo on the right side of Lily's left middle finger._

_"Hey, I was the one who had the fake ID, you were just walking me home after you saw me leaving the tattoo parlor." Lily responded as they hugged. "I really hope this doesn't happen again, I don't know how much more stress his heart can take." She replied, Johnny kissing her forehead… and they heard footsteps._

_"Alison, he wants to see you." Alan responded._

_Lily nodded before she and Johnny hugged, Lily standing up and walking into Edward's room… and Edward smiling slightly._

_"There you are, my precious little granddaughter." Edward replied as they hugged for a few seconds._

_"You scared us out of our minds, you salty old curmudgeon." Lily responded, Edward chuckling a bit._

_"I'll be okay, kiddo." Edward replied, brushing Lily's tears away._

_"Promise?" Lily asked._

_"I promise." Edward responded as they hugged, Edward once again seeing her tattoo. "No more tattoos until you're legal age." He replied as they let go._

_"I promise." Lily responded._

_"And I'll try to be a little more understanding of your friendship with that O'Brien boy." Edward replied._

_But Lily knew that Edward would still be hesitant…_

**Present time…**

Lily woke up with a jolt after her X-rays and MRI scans, Johnny checking on her.

"Hey, it's okay, kiddo. You're in the ER still, they're gonna move you to a private room soon." Johnny responded softly, Lily's right arm in a red cast and sling and her leg in an orthopedic brace as she had only sprained it.

The neck brace was long gone as Lily only had bruises on her neck from it hitting the roadside.

"How are Elizabeth and Gia?" Lily asked.

"Gia's okay, just a concussion… Elizabeth had to undergo surgery but she's gonna recover. That nurse… Melissa helped save her life." Johnny explained, having checked on them while Lily was out cold.

"I'm glad that she did but… I still think Roy and Laura's suspicions are right about Melissa and I don't want her anywhere near my grandfather." Lily responded at the same time Sonny ran in… and Lily and Sonny carefully hugged.

"Owie…" Sonny replied as he saw her injuries.

"I'm sorry that we couldn't find Courtney, Sonny." Lily responded.

"It's not your fault, Lily. And if she does come back one day, hopefully it'll be with a clear mind. Mike, Janine and I haven't made things easier on her and we'll have to live with that." Sonny replied as they let go. "I managed to call Jason, he's on his way back here." He explained.

"He's gonna lose it at seeing me like this…" Lily responded.

"Hey, these injuries are gonna heal and you'll be back to yourself before you know it, okay…" Sonny replied before he trailed off when he saw Lily's heart tattoo. "Leave it at the one tattoo for now, little lady. I'm guessing you got grounded for a bit afterwards." He responded.

"For about a week. Then everything went back to normal… that was back in October." Lily replied.

In Edward's room, he saw Melissa walk in and chuckled.

"Oh, thank God you're here." Edward replied.

"Oh, Edward, you know I am not as perfect as you think I am." Melissa responded.

"Oh. Have a few secrets, do you? Well, you know that they can be quite profitable if they're managed well." Edward explained.

"Is that right? Secrets, huh? Is that what gives you a will to live?" Melissa asked.

"You might say that." Edward answered.

"Well, that's wonderful." Melissa responded.

"Oh. If you only knew." Edward replied.

"I guess the hard part is when, you know, people just have nothing left. They have no health, no hope." Melissa responded, exhausted from helping operate on Elizabeth.

"Thanks to you, I have hope. But that doesn't mean I'm going to be around forever." Edward replied.

"Oh, I wouldn't be so sure about that." Melissa responded.

"No, my dear. To me, death is like a dinner party that's been penciled into my calendar. I don't want to go, but there's no way I can keep from it." Edward explained.

"I think if you stay away from those cheese blintzes, you might not have to go to that dinner party for a very long time." Melissa responded as Ned walked in.

"Any chance you can get him to sign a contract to that effect?" Ned asked.

"Now, do you see how my family treats me? I am nothing but a signature. The only exceptions are my little granddaughter and my wife." Edward replied.

"I was joking." Ned responded.

"Why aren't you at work?" Edward asked.

"Feeling better, are we?" Ned responded.

"No. Not since you showed up. And I keep hearing something about a horrific car accident." Edward replied.

"Edward, Ned… you're not gonna like this but one of the accident victims is Lily. She's okay aside from being bruised and dealing with a broken arm and sprained ankle." Melissa explained, Edward and Ned frightened.

"I want to see her!" Edward replied firmly.

In the ER, Johnny helped Lily into a wheelchair after getting the IV and IV needle out of her left wrist and bandaging it… and removing the blood pressure cuff from her upper left arm.

"I don't like this idea, Lily." Johnny responded.

"I know I should be resting but I want to see my grandfather." Lily replied.

Johnny guided her to the elevator… and from a distance, Taggert observed them.

He remembered Gia's words from earlier and knew it wouldn't be easy.


	3. Life Must Go On

_**A/N: First flashback of young Johnny.**_

_**August 11th 1998…**_

_"Well, that's the last of them… you and Elisa keep an eye on Ma, okay, little brother?" Ivy responded after Johnny helped her pack up for college._

_"We will and you keep making Ma proud by going through with school." Johnny replied as he and 18 year old Ivy hugged for a few seconds. "I'm gonna miss seeing you around here and spending time with you, Sis." He responded._

_"I know, Johnny. But I'll still come back and visit, I promise." Ivy explained before they closed the trunk of the red Sedan, Ivy getting into the driver's side and giving Johnny another smile before she drove off out of the Bensonhurst neighborhood they spent their lives in._

_Johnny walked back indoors and closed the door, seeing Elisa playing with Brook Lynn and smiling._

_Rebecca looked back over her shoulder to see Johnny, Elisa and Brook Lynn and then to Lois as they smiled._

_"I still can't believe that Ivy's all grown now, it just seems like yesterday that Leo and I were bringing her home from the hospital." Rebecca responded as she brushed tears away, Lois hugging her._

_"He's smiling from heaven, Bex. Proud of you and the kids, don't ever forget that." Lois replied as they let go._

_Johnny looked at a picture of him, Leo, Rebecca, Ivy and Elisa… and blinked tears away._

_"We'll keep making you proud, Dad." Johnny replied quietly as Elisa kept Brook Lynn distracted._

_But Elisa knew that their dad's death took too much of a toll on Johnny…_

**Present time…**

The door opened and Ned looked from Lily and Johnny to Edward… who smiled as Johnny wheeled Lily into the room and Edward and Lily hugged.

"Oh, I am so glad to see you but not so glad that you're out of your hospital bed when you should be recovering, kiddo." Edward responded as they let go.

"I'll heal up, Grandfather. It's you I'm worried about, this is the second heart attack you've had in weeks." Lily replied.

"I'll take better care of myself but you need to as well. And you…" Edward responded, looking to Johnny. "I've clearly misjudged you, young man. I see how happy my little granddaughter is when you're around and I'm truly sorry that I've been horrible to you. It'll never happen again." He explained.

"Thank you, Mr. Quartermaine." Johnny replied, having braced himself for Edward's anger instead.

"You're welcome. Now you guide Alison back to her room, make sure she rests." Edward responded.

Lily looked at Edward and then at Melissa… and Edward lightly rubbed Lily's left wrist.

"I'll be okay, my dear." Edward replied reassuringly.

They hugged again and Ned and Johnny left with Lily right as Alan, Monica and Tony reached the room and sighed in relief.

"I told you two that she just wanted to make sure he was okay but it's hard for a parent not to worry about their kids." Tony responded.

"You're right about that. My mom still calls me, so does my Aunt Lois." Johnny replied.

"You're Lois's godson… she mentioned that she's very close to families in Bensonhurst." Monica responded.

Alan saw the look in Lily's eyes as she saw Melissa checking on Edward… and Alan lightly rubbed Lily's left arm.

"He's gonna be okay, I promise." Alan replied softly, him and Lily hugging.

Settled into a room, Lily was unable to settle into sleep… and so Johnny kept her distracted.

But he knew what was on her mind.

"If Melissa's even thinking about killing Edward, she's gonna have to try to go through everyone at this hospital, kiddo." Johnny replied as the door opened and Roy and Laura walked in, Roy and Lily hugging after Roy put the gardenias in a vase of water.

"Those are beautiful…" Lily responded as they let go, her and Laura hugging for a few seconds.

"Well flowers brighten up anything. And don't worry, Elizabeth is recovering." Laura replied.

"I wish that damn accident never happened." Lily responded.

"No cussing. But you're not the only one wishing that things turned out differently, Lily." Roy replied, lightly ruffling Lily's hair. "And don't worry, we'll keep Melissa away from Edward." He whispered once they hugged again.

Once Lily was settled into sleep, Johnny lightly brushed her hair back and kissed her forehead as he softly sang _The_ _Highwayman_ by Johnny Cash & Waylon Jennings.

"But I am still around… I'll always be around." Johnny whispered, settling back into the recliner and closing his eyes to settle into sleep.

It was barely sunlight when Jason reached the room, having been on a flight from Puerto Rico… and he quietly walked into the room, Johnny waking up abruptly but Lily stayed asleep.

"Johnny O'Brien, right?" Jason asked, Johnny nodding and him and Jason shaking hands for a few seconds. "What exactly happened? Sonny didn't explain everything." He responded.

"About a few weeks ago, Sonny got a hell of a shock when he first met a blonde woman who's his little sister… her name's Courtney, she's Mike's daughter with his second wife Janine Matthews. From what Lily told me, Janine had been trying to blackmail Edward so AJ and a woman named Skye could gain control of ELQ but Courtney told Edward the truth." Johnny explained.

"I can imagine that didn't go over well with Edward… but who exactly is Skye?" Jason responded before they saw Lily's hazel eyes open… and her and Jason hugged. "Hey, Babydoll." He replied softly, kissing Lily's forehead before they let go and he sat down.

"To answer your question, Skye is Dad's daughter with a woman named Rae. They were very young, Dad was still in medical school when Rae had Skye… and as bad as I feel for Skye because she was sold off as a newborn, it gave her no right to cause the havoc she's caused here. I… I don't get why she didn't stay in Pine Valley, Adam Chandler treated her like his own child." Lily explained.

"Put it out of your mind for now. What happened, were you mugged and fought back?" Jason responded.

"No but… I was out looking for Courtney, she took off in Mike's car. I got all turned around and as I was about to go find a payphone, a car hit me and then that car crashed and the driver and passenger were injured. I don't know how else to say this but… Elizabeth was in the passenger seat and she got hurt really bad." Lily explained, brushing her tears away as Jason hugged her again.

Elizabeth woke up suddenly, Lucky lightly brushing her hair back… and Elizabeth backing away from him as she remembered nothing past their wedding that they didn't go through with.

"Get out…" Elizabeth responded.

"Elizabeth-" Lucky tried to explain, Elizabeth slapping him and Lucky backing away.

"Do you need to hear it again, Lucky?! Get out and don't come back!" Elizabeth replied angrily.

Lucky left the room, deciding to go find Bobbie so she can check on Elizabeth… and Elizabeth closed her eyes for a few seconds.

"I have to let him go… for both of our sakes." Elizabeth responded quietly, refusing to cry.

She was determined to stay strong and go on living life… even if it meant living without Lucky.


End file.
